What If? Blog
Jan 4th, 2009
I am glad to write you today and I profit the time wishing you a HAPPY NEW YEAR.
I wish: health, prosperity, peace, love, and a better life coming with that 2009th year.
I hope God will bless you and the What If? Foundation more than ever before. I hope that he will
give you more possibilities to help us, the Haitian youth, in our education, so that we can expect a wonderful tomorrow for our country. Thank you for all you’ve done and for what will be done in the future. God bless you and may you have a Happy New Year. Sincerely yours, Nathalie
Nov 26th, 2008
November 8, 2008
Dear Friends,
How good it is to have friends! How good it is to know we have caring neighbors!
I hope you are surviving well during these hard times. Please, keep up your good spirit all the way. May you always try to find the positive aspects of life. That is my wish for you.
We are glad that through the What If? Foundation, we (Margaret Trost and the Board, benefactors and volunteers, the food program personnel and myself) have been able to fight hunger and famine in our specific area, Tiplas Kazo, for almost 9 years. We wish more food, especially for the “Main Street” people of Haiti, until more jobs can be created.
The challenges remain. Haiti has been hit hard so far this season with four hurricanes and tropical storms. As a result, the country has been plunged into deeper misery. In some areas, those who were hungry are now starving. Thirteen Haitians in a small town east of Jacmel, recently starved to death. Our hearts break for their families and our tears flow. Many of you have sent money to the What If? Foundation to help with the hurricane recovery. We’re feeding more people than ever at the food program and we all thank you for your help.
As I am writing this letter, I am hearing reports about the tragic collapse of a three-story school building in Petionville near Port-au-Prince. None of our children were involved. The school was built near a deep ravine. Maybe its foundation eroded or there were defects in the structure. At least 80 students have died and many others remain trapped under the concrete walls while a new hurricane, Paloma, is striking Cuba, our neighbor to the west.
It has been a drama this year. Haiti definitely needs help from God and from all our friends. Someday, with technology developing and more jobs available, we expect to be better prepared to resist the Atlantic hurricane season. At this point, I continue to sing… “One day at a time…” Yes, “Piti, piti na rive.”
May your Thanksgiving and the holiday season be happy for you all.
Your grateful,
Gerard Jean-Juste
Nov 8th, 2008
Fr. Jean-Juste just told me the devastating news of a school collapse in Port-au-Prince, a few miles from the St. Clare’s neighborhood. More than 500 children were inside. (None of the students we sponsor attend this school.) Over 50 children have died and many are still buried. Rescue workers are searching for survivors. Everyone is grieving this tragic loss. It’s so heartbreaking. Here’s an excerpt from a post I received via email:
“The three-story La Promesse school building in Petionville, Haiti, collapsed while class was in session with more than 500 to 700 students inside. The bodies of at least 50 children killed have been recovered so far, over 200 injured have been either treated or admitted for care; as the death toll is expected to reach in the hundreds. Trinite Hospital is the only working hospital open in Port-au-Prince. The other two, General Hospital and Hospital de la Paix, are closed by strikes. Mothers of the school children and neighbors who live around the school that our Haiti correspondents spoke to late yesterday evening say the screams and moans of more students, buried in the rubble of the concrete building, can still be heard throughout the night.” HLLN, November 7, 2008, Ezili Danto Witness Project, 9:55 pm, November 7, 2008
Oct 10th, 2008
I’ve just returned from a week in the Midwest where I did several On That Day, Everybody Ate book readings. During my time in Chicago, I spoke to 300 Kindergarten – 5th graders at the Carl Sandburg Elementary School in Wheaton. The school is doing a “loose change” collection for the What If? Foundation throughout the month of October as part of their “Make A Difference” day focus. I showed them slides of the food program at St. Clare’s and talked about the hunger so many children their age face every day in Haiti and what a difference their collection will make. The kids were focused and responsive and enthusiastic about helping out. One boy said he had $10 saved and knew that would make 15 meals possible (70 cents/meal). He told him mom that he wanted to fly to Haiti himself to give the money to the children so they would know he cared. The kids at Carl Sandburg Elementary reminded me of the importance of believing that every small step we take is important and that reaching out with compassion is what our world needs. I am always inspired by the generous hearts of children. - Margaret
Sep 20th, 2008
I’m so moved by the response to the hurricane appeal I sent out last week. Thanks to your help, we’ve been able to increase the amount of money we send each week to pay for the meals at St. Clare’s. The number of children coming to eat is still up about two to three hundred/day more than usual (1,500 + are coming) but Fr. Jean-Juste says things appear to be stabilizing. On most days, there’s enough food to feed all the children and some adults. In addition to buying more food at the farmers’ market, donations are being used to provide purified drinking water for the children. Piti piti na rive! – Margaret Trost
Sep 11th, 2008
Dear Friends of the What If? Foundation,
Many of you have emailed wondering how our friends in Haiti are doing after being hit by Hurricane Gustav, Tropical Storm Hanna, and Hurricane Ike, all in the last three weeks. Thankfully, the community we serve in Port-au-Prince has not experienced the devastating flooding that has been described as catastrophic in many other parts of Haiti, but the situation is still very serious. There are millions of people suffering throughout the country. Dr. Paul Farmer of Partners In Health has written, “I have never seen anything as painful.” (follow this link to read his full letter)
I spoke with Fr. Jean-Juste, the priest of St. Clare’s Church, where the food program we support takes place, on the phone today and he described the situation in this way:
“This is indeed a nightmare. I thank God for allowing me to be present with a suffering nation. At another food program some 8 miles south of our food program, a security guard shot at the crowd who were desperate for a meal. An unconfirmed report said three hungry people died, 12 were wounded. Some small children were crushed within a crowd of starving young men, women and elderly people. The luckiest and very little babies hold onto their mothers or big sisters in the hope of some food. The Center is closed now. This has brought more people to our food program, which is overflowing with hungry children and their parents. I keep repeating to all: serve with love, no violence, use our heart. We’re doing everything we can to feed as many people as possible. The children continue to be fed first, but there are so many, there has been no food left over for the adults. Yesterday, some children had to return home without food because we ran out. Our reserve rice and beans are gone.”
The What If? Foundation, which is the only funding source for this meal program, has sent additional money to pay for more food to try to meet the growing need. If you are able to send a donation to help the food program at St. Clare’s through this crisis, please do. Between the dramatic rise in food prices over the last year and now the devastating hurricanes, your support and prayers are needed more than ever.
With gratitude,
Margaret
Margaret Trost
President, What If? Foundation
Sep 8th, 2008
My heart is breaking as I read the reports out of Haiti. Dr. Paul Farmer of Partners In Health, which provides health care services to people in the areas hit hardest by the hurricanes, writes “I have never seen anything as painful.”
Fr. Jean-Juste just emailed me that “There was a sudden increase of children for the meal on Friday. It seems to me, that some of those leaving the flooded areas are coming to our Food Program. The additional bags of rice and beans we had in reserve are gone. I am worrying and looking for a quick answer. I am considering giving a press conference on the food issue this coming week. Haiti falls like a puzzle. We must place all the parts together. Piti piti na rive. Little by little we will rebuild.”
Donations are needed now more than ever - to Partners In Health for their hurricane relief efforts as well as to our food program at St. Clare’s so we can continue to respond to the increased number of children in need of food.
Sep 6th, 2008
Reports in from the north of Haiti are so devastating. Hundreds of people have died in the flood waters of Tropical Storm Hanna. Many are still stranded on their roof tops. Thousands of people haven’t eaten since Monday. Food relief is just starting to arrive by boat into the Gonaives harbor. And Hurricane Ike is on its way. A report from Partners In Health gives much more information on the current situation and also offers a way to donate to relief efforts. Here’s the link to their website: www.pih.org - Margaret Trost
Aug 27th, 2008
I received an email from Fr. Jean-Juste this morning letting me know that the winds from Hurricane Gustav - which had been fierce - have died down and the community is okay. I’m so relieved! Here’s an excerpt: “Tiplas Kazo people are fine. The roads are muddy. Early Wednesday, it was raining for hours. Yesterday, the crowd at the food program was less intense. The walk was tougher for the littles ones who live far away. The food was delicious. The cooks did the cooking hurricane or not. Heroic, loving persons. No media reports yet about hurricane Gustave devastation around the country…” Margaret Trost
Aug 22nd, 2008
I’m so excited that we’re going to be able to give scholarships to more students this fall! We have enough donations to be able to re-enroll all the kids from last year (about 150) plus 50 more! A list is kept at the food program of all the children who come to eat that are not in school. Thankfully, some of these children will get to go this year.
During my July visit to Haiti, Fr. Jean-Juste and I met with 85 of the students we sponsor and it was such an inspiring meeting. From kindergarten through technical school, they expressed eloquently their excitement and gratitude for being part of the education program. I watched the youngest students watch in admiration as the first two technical school graduates were congratulated for completing their degrees. The community now has a plumber and an electrician and they told me they’ve already repaired several things. Margaret Trost
